


Summertime

by Adoravel_Fenomeno



Series: KitTy one-shot AUs [2]
Category: The Dark Artifices Series - Cassandra Clare, The Mortal Instruments Series - Cassandra Clare, The Shadowhunter Chronicles - All Media Types, The Wicked Powers Series - Cassandra Clare
Genre: Alternate Universe - Childhood Friends, Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Fluff, M/M, Party, Pining, Spin the Bottle, Summer, Summer Vacation, mundane AU, soft
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-16
Updated: 2020-08-16
Packaged: 2021-03-06 03:16:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,672
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25936528
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Adoravel_Fenomeno/pseuds/Adoravel_Fenomeno
Summary: It was the third day of that exceedingly hot summer. Kit kind of liked it - the salt of the sea, the burning heat of the sun, the end of the school year. It was nice.Ty, though, begged to differ. Summer had always been a difficult time for him. He didn’t like the smell and stickiness of sunscreen, the sun in his eyes, nor the slow drag of hot days.And Kit hated everything that made Ty feel bad.…In which Kit, Livvy, and Ty are childhood best friends spending summer together. Kit has a slight crush on Ty, but it’s not like he would ever dare to say that out loud.
Relationships: Livia Blackthorn & Tiberius Blackthorn & Kit Rook, Tiberius Blackthorn/Kit Rook
Series: KitTy one-shot AUs [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1876717
Comments: 14
Kudos: 111





	Summertime

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoy this❤️❤️❤️
> 
> (Tiny reminder that this is part of a series where I’ll be posting KitTy one-shot AUs twice a week. The next one will be up on Wednesday!)

“Definitely not that,” Ty said.

“Nuh-uh. You said you’d watch it!”

“That was before I knew it was a modern-day adaptation.” Ty furrowed his eyebrows in disgust, his arms crossed in front of him, squeezing his plushie of a bee between them. “It’s not interesting anymore.”

“Of course it is.” Kit clicked play and snuggled further in the bed, careful not to get too close to him. Since he was thirteen, he avoided that as much as possible.

“Watson,” Ty said with a surprisingly serious voice, “I refuse to watch an unnecessary adaptation of something that’s already perfect.”

“Sherlock,” Kit replied in the same tone, “you’re watching it because I said so.”

Ty rolled his eyes, but fell quiet as the first scene started. Kit mentally tapped himself on the back. Any distraction would be good for Ty.

It was the third day of that exceedingly hot summer. Kit kind of liked it—the salt of the sea, the burning heat of the sun, the end of the school year. It was nice.

Ty, though, begged to differ. Summer had always been a difficult time for him. He didn’t like the smell and stickiness of sunscreen, the sun in his eyes, nor the slow drag of hot days.

And Kit hated everything that made Ty feel bad.

He and Livvy did all they could to make it more tolerable, like turning on the AC no matter how mad Julian would be (not as mad after he realized it was for Ty) and indulging in whole days draped over the bed while consuming the biggest amount of Sherlock content.

That time, though, Ty also decided to indulge Livvy a bit. She had begged for Julian and Helen to let her go to a stupid ‘end of the year’ party that their class was having. The older Blackthorn siblings were way too protective—well, except for Mark, but Kit doubted anyone actually saw him as an authority figure—and claimed she could only go if Ty was with her.

So Ty agreed.

He had never liked parties, Kit knew—too many people, too much noise. And it was even worse in the summer when everything was washed down with a layer of sweat and overbearing sunlight. But he would do anything for his twin. As kind as it was, Kit also thought it was a bit stupid; it didn’t cost much to have a little more self-preservation.

As per usual, Kit was invited along with the twins. As per usual, he would never lose an opportunity to hang out with Ty. He would also spend the night in the Blackthorn’s home, so he wouldn’t have to wake up Tessa and Jem in the middle of the night. God knew they lost enough sleep already with their newborn baby.

As Sherlock was explaining Mrs. Hudson’s backstory to Watson, the door of the room opened. Livvy came in, her cellphone and three cups of ice cream balanced precariously in her arms. Kit was slightly impressed they hadn’t fallen down yet.

“What are we watching?” she asked without looking up from her phone as the cups were distributed.

“BBC Sherlock,” Ty answered. His face looked a tad too displeased for Kit’s liking, but he ignored it. Ty would come around to the show eventually.

“Move, then,” Livvy kneed Kit in the ribs, earning a few grunts and swearing.

Kit moved closer to Ty, and they adjusted their limbs in one very specific way that allowed three people to lie on the same twin-sized bed. Their positions increased the heat, but none of them moved to the other bed. It was more comfortable when they were together.

…

The bathroom mirror spread through the whole wall. Kit supposed that was necessary for a home where there were at least five people there at all times.

Livvy was in one corner adjusting her hoop earrings, her eyes scrunched and her hair tied in a messy bun as to not interfere with her makeup. Ty was in the middle of them, fixing his already-perfect hair.

And Kit. Well. Kit wasn’t sure of what to do with himself. He stared at his face. He fumbled his clothes. The harsh lighting wasn’t doing much for him, honestly.

“I think this mirror is lying to me.”

Livvy snorted from across the room. “No, darling, that’s just your usual self.”

He scowled at her, but no arguments came to mind. The twins were ridiculously attractive, he had to give them that. In fact, all Blackthorns were attractive. It was kinda infuriating, really.

Especially when it came to Ty, precious and wonderful Ty, the most beautiful person Kit had ever met.

Not that he would ever say that to him. He wouldn’t.

Which was why, when Ty got closer to help him with his constantly-messy hair, Kit sucked in a breath and pretended not to be affected by his near presence at all.

Ty smelled like pool chlorine and Livvy’s sticky-sweet perfume. His fingers carded carefully through Kit’s hair, and Kit tried his best not to melt on the spot. He noticed the faint red marks on Ty’s nose, left there by the pair of sunglasses he wore when he went outside. One thing he had always appreciated about Ty—aside from his kindness and sharp mind—were his eyes, that focused on his work, grey like the skies before a summer storm; chaotic and intense.

Kit didn’t dare to say a word.

“At least you guys don’t have to fuss about what you’re wearing,” said Livvy, effectively breaking the moment. Or maybe the moment was only in Kit’s head. “Boys have way more freedom in fashion choices.”

Kit snorted. “If freedom means it’s only socially acceptable for us to wear jeans and t-shirts, then, yeah, sure.”

“But it kind of does, doesn’t it?” She hopped on the counter, probably already done with her makeup. “Like, sure, you don’t have as many options, but… You don’t have to worry about what people are gonna think. You already know that, if it’s jeans and a t-shirt, no one will care.”

“And it’s not you can’t wear anything else,” Ty said. “You can, it’s just that people won’t accept it as much.”

“Well, if you look at it that way, then girls also don’t have to worry about what they’re wearing. They can also go in jeans and a t-shirt and just not care about people’s acceptance.”

“Y’know, Kit—” Livvy gestured at both her chest and his, “—I think we’re on the same side here. Lack of social acceptance sucks, that’s it.”

He nodded in agreement.

“And that doesn’t change the fact that I still have nothing to wear.”

“Livvy, you already went through 80% of your wardrobe,” Ty sighed. “Can’t you just go with this one?”

“80% isn’t all of it. Plus, you guys didn’t approve any of them.” Her eyes glinted, and she clasped her hands together. “We could do a fashion show.”

“No,” Ty said at the same time Kit began to laugh.

“Aw, c’mon, Ty-Ty, it’ll be fun.”

She got down from the counter and ushered them downstairs, where they sat on the couch and waited for the madam to expose her five hundred garments.

Since they were kids Livvy liked to do that. Kit usually appreciated it—he didn’t know if it was genuine appreciation or just glee in seeing Ty’s exasperated face. It was both, probably.

When they first met, Kit glued to Ty’s side—it was like that in their childhood, and like that it would always be. Soon he came to terms with the fact that the twins were a package deal; he couldn’t have Ty if he didn’t conquer Livvy. So she became one of his favorite people in the world.

Plus, they shared similar interests. Fashion. Making fun of people. Teasing Ty, sometimes. Fighting anyone who gave him any shit. Yeah, Kit would say those were the main ingredients for a good and long-lasting friendship. 

When they turned thirteen, Kit finally accepted that Livvy was, in fact, his best friend, and Ty was way more.

Again, not that he would ever know that. Kit wouldn’t tell him if he was being held at gunpoint.

Livvy swayed around the living room, her baby pink dress bouncing along with her now loose hair. She chattered endlessly about the fabric, the figure, and the occasion. Ty pretended to listen, but Kit knew he was thinking about something else. Kit pretended not to care, but he absorbed her every word.

“Yeah, this one is great too,” Kit commented without looking up from his phone.

“I think I’m going with it.”

“Livs, you said that about the last three dresses.” Ty had his head in his hands, his leg moving impatiently.

Kit laughed. “Maybe she’ll go with all three of them. One over the other.”

Ty turned to look at her with a serious face. “Don’t do that.”

“I won’t.” She rolled her eyes. “But I really think this is the one.”

“Are you saying yes to the dress?”

Livvy flicked Kit’s arm. “You shouldn’t waste your time watching housewives’ TV shows.”

“What else can I do? Ty won’t watch BBC Sherlock with me.”

“I’m not to blame here. Your trash taste is yours only.”

“Okay.” Kit lightly slapped his thigh and got up. “Because I’m being _attacked_ here, I think we should get going. We’re late already.”

“We’re charmingly late,” Livvy corrected as Ty rushed to put his shoes on. They were blue converses, and Kit had to laugh every time he saw the scrawled music lyrics on the soles—that was from their borderline emo time. He wouldn’t trade those memories for anything.

Kit pulled out his phone from his pocket to call an Uber. It was party time.

...

The music was way too loud. It was a nice song playing, sounded a bit like the ‘best 80’s hits’ CD that Tessa had in her car. But. Way too loud. Kit almost feared the vibrations would shatter the glass of the window behind the bench he and Ty were sitting on.

“It’s fine,” Ty mumbled, his cheek squished against Kit’s shoulder. “You can go back inside. I’m okay now.”

Kit drew away from his tight hug to scratch a mosquito bite. He forgot how those little pests bothered him in the summer.

Ty had actually been okay for the first moments at the party. His headphones were secured around his ears, and Livvy was by his side, rubbing his hands. But the music got louder. More people arrived. Livvy left to talk to someone neither of them knew. Ty suddenly wasn’t that okay anymore.

When Kit took him outside, the first thing Ty asked was to be held tight. Kit did. He tried to ignore the insane flutter in his ribcage, screamed in his head that it meant nothing. That Ty just needed the pressure. And that he was a friend—a reliable friend, one that wouldn’t read too much into a hug that meant nothing.

“I wanna stay with you,” Kit stated, hoping that it didn’t sound as gay as he thought.

Ty snorted, not seemingly fazed by it. “No, you don’t.”

Kit did. In his opinion, there was nothing better than holding Ty.

But Ty looked back at the window, drawing even further away from Kit. “You can go back to the party,” he said. “I’m pretty sure Livvy’s somewhere inside.”

Kit pointed his finger to the dark corner where he could clearly see her baby pink dress. “I think I found her.”

She was being pressed against the wall by a boy, kissing him to death. She seemed happy enough, Kit thought. Maybe he could congratulate her later or something. Maybe buy a cake. She would be thoroughly embarrassed by that.

“Oh.” Ty looked at Kit with widened eyes. “Oh, I’m so sorry.”

Kit tilted his head to the side. “About what?”

“Well, you know…” Ty’s leg began to bounce up and down again, and he pulled on the beach bracelets on his wrists. Kit wondered if he wanted another hug. “You… She had… You know.”

“What?”

“New Year’s eve, don’t you remember?”

Then Kit was certain he had no idea of what Ty was talking about. “Remember what?”

Kit spent the New Years with the Blackthorns. It had been like that since he was a child, living with his dad. When Tessa and Jem took custody of him, not much changed concerning celebrations—he spent Christmas with his family and New Years with his best friends.

The New Year’s Eve party from the previous year had been a bit of a mess to him. Kit had gotten extremely drunk, and, according to a very amused Dru, wasn’t in his best behavior. And he couldn't remember a thing.

“New Years, when you... Well, you…” Ty seemed uncomfortable and embarrassed, his lips pressed tightly together and his leg bouncing even quicker.

“It’s better if you don’t tell me,” Kit cut in. “My mind is like a Jenga tower. We shouldn’t pull out any pieces unless we’re sure it won’t wreck everything.”

Ty contorted his face in a displeased expression. Kit must’ve chosen the wrong dialogue option.

“Actually,” Ty said, his voice cold and sharp, “I’d prefer if you went back inside. I wanna be alone for a bit.”

Kit was taken back for a second. Ty rarely was cold to him. If he was upset, he would say it. If they had a problem, they would talk about it. Kit scratched another mosquito bite. He wasn’t sure if he should really leave Ty by himself.

He got up from the bench. Ty wasn’t looking at his face at all. Kit went back to the party.

…

Kit didn’t know how he had ended up there. Well, he knew that Livvy had pulled him in, laughing and joking, but had no idea what was his thought process to say yes.

The party had only gotten louder after the time he spent outside. He was sure Ty would hate it. He forced himself not to think too much about it.

He was sitting on the floor, part of a circle made of a bunch of party guests, an empty soda bottle in the middle. Kit looked around; he wouldn’t mind kissing any of those people. He couldn’t say he was eager either.

After slow passing minutes of watching other people making out, it was his turn.

He spun the bottle as a few girls squeaked and poked a blushing member of their group. Kit paid them no mind.

It scored right on Livvy.

She began laughing maniacally, and he couldn’t help but laugh too. Just the thought of kissing her was hilarious. It was Livvy, his Livvy, his friend.

Through their sarcastic smiles, they gave each other what had to be the most anti-climatic kiss in the world. He heard the group of girls giving a groan of sadness. Livvy chuckled again.

For a moment, he thought about saying how he would rather kiss her brother, but decided against it. It sounded a bit too crude.

“Do you wanna dance?” Livvy asked while the girl beside him gave the bottle another spin.

Kit took her hand and walked to the makeshift dance floor, losing himself in the sound of 80’s music and Livvy’s laughter.

…

Arriving at the Blackthorn’s house felt like arriving at his own home. Kit’s eyes threatened to slip shut, his body tired and aching. It was the middle of the night, and, through the silence, Kit could hear the cicadas singing outside.

Livvy called dibs on the shower, dashing upstairs to the bathroom. Kit and Ty quietly followed.

Ty hadn’t said a word on their way back from the party, and his silent treatment persisted to the house. Kit felt like he should say something, give any attempt to fix their problem, but he didn’t know how. They had never been the type of friends who fought by ignoring each other.

He roamed around the twins’ room as Ty put his headphones on and scrolled through his phone. The fairy lights that adorned the walls were identical to the ones he had at home, and so were a few of the polaroid pictures under them.

One of them was of him and Livvy with their surfboards—it was their first surfing class, when they were twelve. Ty was right behind them, under a big beach umbrella and with a book in his hands.

Another was of them sipping on milkshakes and eating chili fries in the diner next to Kit’s house. That one had smudges of Livvy’s vibrant nail polish, and Kit remembered the day that she hung it on the wall, how she had decided to paint everyone’s nails no matter if they wanted or not.

“Hey, Sherlock,” Kit called. “Do you wanna share the bed or I sleep on the floor?”

They always slept on the same bed. Always.

However, Ty was pulling an extra mattress from under his bed and laying out to Kit, no words necessary.

The silence sank into Kit’s eardrums.

He could see the faint light coming from under Dru’s door; she was probably watching some movie with earbuds on. He wondered if she could come save him from his own awkwardness.

Kit sat on Ty’s bed right next to him. The smell of pool chlorine burned his nose again, and he had to fight the urge to hold Ty close and ask what had happened. He nervously rubbed circles on his own thighs instead.

“Ty, are you mad at me?”

Ty averted his gaze and turned up his music’s volume. Kit could hear the violins.

“Ty, talk to me,” he begged.

No answer.

“Ty, please,—”

“Of course I’m mad, Christopher,” he snapped. He never used Christopher. He knew Kit didn’t like it.

He tried to stay calm. “Okay. Then tell me why, so I can apologize.”

“You can’t play with people’s feelings like that.” Ty looked at him, frustration seeping on his face. “It’s not right.”

Kit shook his head in confusion. “Whose feelings?”

“You’ll hurt Livvy if you keep kissing her and ignoring it later.” At Kit’s dazed look, he huffed. “Don’t pretend you don’t know, I saw you two at the party. And at New Year’s.”

“Ty, I don’t—” he wasn’t even sure of what to say, “Ty, I really have no idea of what you’re talking about. I don’t… I can’t remember a thing about New Year’s.”

Ty’s hands started twisting in his lap, fiddling with his beach bracelets, his leg bouncing up and down. “You kissed her, right at midnight. Like couples do.” Ty looked away. “Like I know you’ve wanted to do since you’ve met her,” he added, quieter.

Kit could hear Livvy’s shower running, Dru’s steps around her room, and a persisting bug buzzing in his ear. But, most of all, he could hear the absurdity of Ty’s statement.

“What?” he laughed.

“I know you’re in love with her or something.” Ty seemed annoyed at his reaction. He couldn’t help it; he was still laughing. “It’s okay, I’m not hurt. But you have to show people you love them. Or they’ll never know.”

“Do you?”

Ty looked at him in shock. He tried not to cower. Kit knew what to say, he had those words dormant on his tongue since he was thirteen.

“Do I what?” Ty asked.

“Do you, Tiberius,” he repeated as he inched closer to him, “know how much I love you?”

Kit placed his hands on Ty’s jaw. His skin was warm, like he had just gone out in the sun. Kit wanted to sink in it.

“You’re not making any sense.” Ty was avoiding his look, staring right at the wall behind Kit.

They were so close their noses were almost touching. The world reduced itself to the surface of Kit’s skin, shivery and heated.

“It was never Livvy,” Kit said, letting his hand trace its way to Ty’s hair, pulling him closer. “Can I kiss you?”

Ty nodded yes. He didn’t need any more confirmation.

Kit pressed his lips to his, trying to be careful. Gentle. Like Ty deserved it. His heartbeat was loud in his own ears, blood rushing to his face, goosebumps all over his body. He only drew Ty closer and closer, pulling him by his hair, by his clothes. If at first Ty was shy and tentative, he got the hang of it pretty quickly, responding with eagerness.

It was slow and intense, like the incessant swaying of the waves, hot and unpredictable like the Santa Ana winds.

Kit was dimly aware of the shower cutting off in the bathroom, and Livvy’s steps into the hallway. He didn’t pull back. The door didn’t open. 

Ty held him by his waist, tracing patterns on his stomach. He let himself get lost in the kiss, every detail of the world melting away with Ty’s soft breaths and gentle touches.

…

“Oh my God, will you two ever stop?” complained Livvy as she threw popcorn at them.

The AC was in the lowest temperature setting possible, but it still wasn’t enough. It could be just the body heat he was receiving from hugging Ty close, but that summer felt hotter than any other.

“Nope, I don’t think so.” Kit kissed Ty on the cheek and nuzzled against his neck. “Now get your ass over here, or you’ll lose the next episode.”

Livvy moved to get to the bed he and Ty were lying on, but quickly made a grossed out face and went to the other one.

“No,” Ty whined, making grabby hands at her, “don’t leave with all the popcorn.”

“Should’ve thought of that before doing gross shit with my best friend.”

“Livvy,” he said with a serious face, “I thought we had agreed that Kit’s _our_ best friend.”

She shrugged and munched on another mouthful of popcorn.

Kit hid his smile against Ty’s collarbone and clicked play on the next Sherlock episode, tightening his hold on his boyfriend.

**Author's Note:**

> While writing this, I realized I’ve always associated summer with humidity, which becomes quite difficult when they live in L.A. If there’s anything here factually incorrect (and I’m sure there must be), feel free to tell me!
> 
> Drop some comments/kudos if you wanna make my heart beat a little faster :)
> 
> Thank you so much for reading!


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